The Chinese government on Tuesday published a white paper on the country's development, stressing peaceful development is China's strategic choice to realize modernization, make itself strong and prosperous and make more contribution to the progress of human civilization.

The white paper, released by the State Council Information Office, introduces the path, objective and foreign policy of the peaceful development and elaborates on what China's peaceful development means to the rest of the world.

"Situated in the East, China, a country with an ancient civilization and a population of over 1.3 billion, is making big strides in its advance toward modernization. What path of development has China chosen? What will China's development bring to the rest of the world? " it says at the start.

China has declared to the rest of the world on many occasions that it takes a path of peaceful development and is committed to upholding world peace and promoting common development and prosperity for all countries, the white paper says.

At the beginning of the second decade of the 21st century and on the occasion of the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China (CPC), China declared solemnly again to the world that peaceful development is a strategic choice made by China to realize modernization, make itself strong and prosperous, and make more contribution to the progress of human civilization, the white paper says.

Stressing China will unswervingly follow the path of peaceful development, the white paper says this is "a path of scientific, independent, open, peaceful, cooperative and common development."

On China's overall goal of pursuing peaceful development, the white paper says that the goal is to promote development and harmony domestically and pursue cooperation and peace internationally.

Specifically, the white paper says this means that China will endeavor to make life better for its people and contribute to human progress through hard work, innovation and reform carried out by the Chinese people and growing long-term friendly relations and promoting equality and mutually-beneficial cooperation with other countries.

As a member of the international community, China has great hope for the future world and adopts the thinking on international relations and foreign policies that conform to peaceful development, it says.

The thinking includes promoting the building of a harmonious world, pursuing an independent foreign policy of peace, promoting new thinking on security featuring mutual trust, mutual benefit, equality and coordination,actively living up to international responsibility and promoting regional cooperation and good-neighborly relations, it says.

Taking the path of peaceful development is a strategic choice made by the Chinese government and people in keeping with the fine tradition of Chinese culture, the development trend of the times and the fundamental interests of China, and it is also a choice which China's development calls for, the white paper says.

The path of peaceful development is a new path of development which China, the biggest developing country in the world has embarked upon, and its global impact will manifest itself over time, the white paper says.

"Its success calls for both the untiring efforts of the Chinese people and understanding and support from the international community," the white paper says.

Taking the path of peaceful development by China with its over one billion population is a great new undertaking in the history of human development, and we do not claim that what we do leaves nothing more to be desired, the white paper says.

China hopes the international community will appreciate China's need to settle, step by step, various difficulties in development it faces as the largest developing country, and the aspiration of the Chinese people to shake off poverty and live a prosperous life,the white paper says.

China hopes the international community will have confidence in the Chinese people's sincerity and determination to achieve peaceful development, and support rather than obstruct China's pursuit of peaceful development, the white paper says.